Ascension
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: Nura Rihan had an illegitimate heir. One only a select few knew about. He was spirited away, and forgotten. Now, his day of reckoning is nigh and all those who have wronged him are about to pay...as he picks up a few ladies on the way. NarutoxHarem!
1. Heir

**A/N: Aaaargh! I finally started updating some of my older stores again and look what happens! I get laid out with another idea! Ah, well, I suppose it can't be helped...**

_This village will burn...but not today._

_~Nura Naruto._

**Heir**

Uzumaki Naruto was on the verge of death.

His body battered, beaten, and broken. He'd grown used to their beatings. To their bludgeoning of his body as he tried, as he failed to defend himself. They said he could not become a shinobi. The sandaime wouldn't allow it. And thus far he hadn't. Despite the boy's best efforts to overcome the obstacles placed before him; he'd failed. Even when he'd stolen the Scroll of Sealing, his proctors refused to pass him. If they knew of the jutsu he'd learned within, he'd surely be dead.

So he kept quiet.

He allowed them their beatings, their sick satisfaction. His day would come. Someday. He kept telling himself this. Kept clinging to that thin thread of hope that it would some day, one day, be over. It was more a small, doomed wish than an actual reality.

But this time they'd gone too far. On this, his thirteenth birthday, they'd torn out his liver and left him for dead. These people weren't humans. In his mind they were nothing but monsters and each of them deserved a death befitting of one. And the kicker was this...he didn't understand why. Supposedly because of the fox sealed within him, but it was just that, there WAS no Kyuubi no Kitsune inside of him. Not that he was aware of, anyway.

If there was, it had certainly kept its yap shut despite all these years. But tonight, something was different. Tonight, something snapped. It made little difference; for they set upon him in much the same manner as they always had. But when someone got the bright idea to carve out his liver, well, that was the kicker. The straw, that broke the back of the camel, as the saying went.

Whatever it was, it set something off in the dying body of Uzumaki Naruto.

An overpowering sensation of pressure bore down upon them like an invisible hand. They sensed something enormous nearby, silent in the dark, like a giant passing within arms reach. A gravid deadly prescence too huge to grant them notice. They glanced to Naruto and saw him grimace, grimace as his fingertips pressed against his temples. A droplet of blood fell from his nose and he gasped, like a man starved for breath.

"The...hell...is...this?" he hissed through clenched teeth. His blood felt...hot. Boiling. Like he was being roasted from the inside out. The thirteen year old tried to speak; but all that emerged was a small cry of agony. He wanted it to stop. He wanted it all to stop! He wanted the pain to go away, and somewhere, in the deepest, darkest corner of his still beating heart, he wanted them...to pay.

_**I can help with that, **_a female voice purred.

_What?_

But the voice did nbot reply a second time.

He lay there, helpless in the shadows, as steam gathered about his prone form. As his body began to change. At first he thought it was just his imagination. But it wasn't. His world went dark, and he awaited his death. But it never came. The last thing he felt was his limbs growing, moving, and when the hell was his hair red...

* * *

The strange fog had a different effect on the mob of villagers. Moreso when a young man stalked out of the shadows where they'd left his corpse. But that was impossible. The demon grat was dead. He'd bled out in the alleyway next to the little fire he'd made himself. It was all he had after they'd burned his house to the ground. They'd left his body on that fire, next to the kettle. Left him to burn.

But the one coming toward him was not burned. Not in the slightest.

The men and women of the mob warily glanced at one another. Where had their victim gone? Who was this man? Was he a shinobi? Impossible. He didn't look a damned thing like a shinobi. This man had long, scarlet hair, flecked with raven blackness. He looked to be about 5'10'' tall. He wore a long black kimono, open at the chest. His wood sandal clicked across the street, where he'd once been barefoot.

"Who the hell is this guy?" One of them murmurred.

"Where's the demon brat?" Hissed another.

In his hands, he held a sword, half as long as he was tall. But what held their interest was his eyes. As shinobi, these men and woman had seen eyes that held Hell in them before, and it was nothing compared to this man. This man had the eyes of a devil. The eyes of a demon. Of wrath incarnate. Those eyes gleamed like coals in the darkness, their master smoking amidst the rain. He rose. Stood in a move so fluid it was seamless, as though time itself had frozen for his very prescence.

The demon grinned; it was a gorgeous white streak in the darkness. He spoke; his voice was soft as velvet, as sweet as honey.

"So, you were the ones who thought you could kill me, hmm?"

"Kill you?" A woman blinked. "Y-You must be mistaken! We weren't trying to kill you...we were after the demon brat!"

"Demon brat?" The redhead frowned, eyes narrowing as he saw the blood in the streets, his blood, spattering the walls. "Oi, oi oi...that's no way to treat a yokai."

"Yokai?"

A low growl left his lips.

"All of you...

The ground itself seemed to pulsate as the man radiated youki.

_...as thanks for awakening me, die at my hands."_

He shouldered the blade, gripping its worn, weathered handle like a long lost lover. His eyes blazed and suddenly, he was gone. None could see him. They could still hear him; the sound of his wooden clogs clicking against the pavement as he approached, the sounded of laughter, deep, dark and rich, but they could not see him. Their terror became palpable as they looked on, as the sounds of laughter came from all around them.

"W-Where'd he go?" One of them cried.

"I can't sense him." gasped another. "Did he seriously just vanish?"

_"Not quite."_

And then, suddenly, one of them felt him. Felt the blade, as it plunged through their stomach. Another felt a brief prick of pain, just before his head toppled from his shoulders and rolled into the street. Still another choked on his own blood as the katana buried itself in his throat.

He turned on another and slashed with the blade. It didn't so much as cut as devour. There was barely any resistance as the blade passed through hitiate, nose, chin, tabard, gambeson, and stomach. The man looked down at the sight, then touched his split face where blood gushed. He screamed, and his entrails spurted out.

Another bolted, shrieking.

_"Where do you think you're going?" _The chunin's stomach opened, but by then Naruto had moved on to his next victim.

This time the sword appeared only as it jutted out of the shinobi's back. The man was lifted on the sword and flung headlong into the side of an iron cauldron. He jerked, his flesh sizzling on the coals, but he did not roll away. His festering remains burned to ashes and left nothing behind but dust.

He felt them crunch beneath that mighty blade like beetles popping under his heel. Their bodies broke like shells and the softness within was ground to gory smears on the decks below. And throughout it all, not a single drop of blood spattered upon him. Any moisture that dared near this demonic angel of death simple evaporated. He was truly death incarnate; come to reclaim what was lost; come to deliver judgement.

"Come now, we're just getting started!" Naruto laughed as he broke a woman's neck. "You can't leave just yet!"

Crescents of biceps and knotted shoulder muscles and glowing eyes were all that appeared, followed by a whoosh of flame as a spinning sword came alight. A civilian toppled to the ground. By the time his head was free of his body, Naruto was already gone, and onto the next. No one moved any longer. It was impossible. This was a ghoul, an apparition that could not be seen nor harmed. Not by blade nor first nor jutsu.

He slid his sword through a man's loins. It would be a bad death. Three more died before anyone attacked him. He danced past a spear and then lopped off it's head, followed soon therafter by that of its owner. In minutes, the remaining few were in utter pandemonium. Men screamed and woman wept, shouting obscene obscenities gibbering about a monster, a demon, a phantasm.

Within short order, none were left to scream.

The boy-turned-demon dispatched his last victim with a flick of the wrist, neatly bifurcating a man down the middle. The severed halves slithered apart in a violent starburst of gore before slithering down to join the desecrated bodies of his fellows.

"Serves them right...the fools!"

Uzumaki Naruto licked the last remnants of blood from his fingers, savoring ever drop. His dark eyes sick with satisfaction. He smiled, a brilliant white streak in the blackness and tilted his head back. He laughed; it was a deep, throaty sound, dark in its exultance.

"I really should thank you lot." He sneered at the corpses. "I never would have awoken if you fools hadn't tried to kill me." He turned, his eyes narrowing as two shadows fell from the sky and landed before him. He readied his blade in anticipation of the next confrontation. Were more of these fools after him now? No matter. He'd kill them too. He would kill all those who opposed him and then...then...

"Master!"

Imagine his surprise when one of them knelt in subservience.

"You know me?" Naruto arched an eyebrow, wondering who on earth this person could be. He peered closer at them, squinting in the dim light of the moon. His eyes widened as the woman-_for it was most certainly a woman-_prostrated herself before him, her forehead kissing the earth in subservience.

She sputtered a moment, raised her head, and abruptly lowered it.

"I...It is I, Kejōrō."

She was a voluptuous beauty. Brown eyes, large breasts, wearing a white kimono dress with flower patterns on the bottom. She had long, wavy brown hair, that covered half of her face before being tied back in a ponytail with tasseled red string. What's more she wore her kimono loose, revealing an ample bosom.

"Kejōrō." The blond-turned-redhead repeated, eyeing her dubiously.

"Yes, young master."

_Young master?_

He felt as if he should know the meaning of those words. They stirred something in him. They ushered his blood, already boiling to a feverish pitch. This pleased him. It felt as if he'd been blind, but now, he could see. He could see everything. He just didn't know how to make any sense of it. Of one thing was certain. He did not recognize them these strange individuals who called him young master. He felt as though he should, but still...

"And you are?" He asked, shooting a piercing glare at the second figure. He wasn't about to lower his guard in the prescence of a beautiful woman. _Damn but Kejōrō was such a beauty!_ The very prescence of her, of her scent, stirred something, within him. _Later,_ he told himself. That could wait. He needed to make sense of the situation. He had too many questions and not enough answers.

"Kubinashi." The second was a youth with blondish black hair, amber eyes and...a floating head? Instead of horror, Naruto felt a strange fascination with the man. He wore an olive-green traditional male's kimono with a blue-green jacket over it, along with traditional straw sandals and bandages around his legs and feet. Like Kejōrō, he too offered a strange, surreal deference. It was almost eerie.

"Why do you bow before me?" Naruto demanded to know.

There was a silence.

"Ano...waka," the woman_-Kejoro, he reminded himself-_answered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, drawing his attention. "Rihan-sama would never forgive us if we didn't pay our respects to you...

_Rihan?_

Naruto blinked. He felt as if he should know that name.

"Master, if I may ask, what are you doing here, so far from home?"

"We thought we'd lost you." Kubinashi added, swiftly. "If not for your earlier release of youki...we'd have never found you."

_Perhaps you have,_ Naruto thought to himself, gazing up at the full moon. He still sensed the prescence of his humanity within him. It was still there, dim but present. Weak as a flower in the winter. Frail. It did no justice to a yokai, to have a part so fragile. It made him sick. How long had that seal prevented his emergence? How long had he lived as an ignorant pawn in this forsaken village? The answer was as clear as the moon in the sky. The memories were coming back to him now; slowly trickling through his concsious as he stood amongst the corpses of his victims, providing him with the overwhelming answer.

_Too long._

"Kejōrō!" he barked, turning toward the woman.

"H-Hai!" The woman stiffened beneath his gaze, and would have prostrated herself further, if it were possible. Naruto grinned. He was already slipping into the role of...of...of what, exactly? The memory escape him. But somehow he knew that he'd every right to command the two before him, as though they were his subourdinates.

"What is the name of my father?"

The silence was deafening.

"S-Surely the young master remembers-

"No, the young master does _not_ remember." Naruto hissed, his exasperation becoming evident. "Now...answer my question. What is the name of the man with whom I share my lineage?" He followed up the question with a small, albeit unintentional release of youki. Ultimately, it was Kubinashi who answered him.

"Rihan Nura, sir."

"Nura." Naruto frowned, shouldering the blade once more. "I see. Then my surname is Nura as well." A cold pang of dread seized his gut, one he clamped upon before it could reflect upon his face. "And what of my father? Does he still draw breath?" This time the answer was unanimous. He could see the relief evident in their eyes, and he went with it. Why would they lie to him now? What could it possibly gain them?

"And my mother?" he asked. "Is she alive as well."

Their silence was a forlorn one.

Naruto Uzumaki...no...Naruto Nura sighed. He ran a hand through his hair, the one spiky blond locks now long and harsh against his head. He gazed into a nearby puddle and was surprised to realize that he no longer bore any sign of his damnable whisker marks. Somewhere deep within him, his human half felt sorrow. The half of him that was not human, the youkai, felt boundless relief. He was in control. He was free.

And he was sick of this village.

"You will take me to my father." Youkai Naruto said. It was not a question. It was a statement. There was no room for arguement. Kejōrō and Kubinashi had no say in this nor was their opinion welcomed in this matter. His blood demanded that he leave this place and return home. The opinion of his human half was irrelevant. Pointless. So long as it existed, the half of him that was Youkai would not permit his return to this place.

Not until it was a sea of flames.

"Waka," Kejōrō began, "Your human form has a life here-

"No." This word shattered all pretence of conversation. "I have no life here. You will take me to see my father." He glared bloody red daggers at the woman, daring her to say otherwise. He would not have it. He would not allow it. This place stank of human ignorance and filth. If he stayed here, he would slaughter everyone. Everything. Now wasn't the time. It was not yet the time. He would return here someday. He would wreak a just vengeance upon thos who had wronge him, but today was not that day.

"Well now, I think its time we left this village." he said. "Take me home."

**A/N: Poor Naruto, he just isn't up to being a youkai, is he? Sadly, this takes place only a few years before Rihan's untimely demise. Will he live? Or will he fall fate to the same end as the manga? In continuation I know Yamabuki wasn't supposed to have any kids because of that stupid Hagoromo Kitsune, but really, who is to say that it was because of the curse that she couldn't have a kid or what? LOLZ **

**You know, I feel REALLY sorry for Konoha now...**

**Enjoy the preview:**

_When he came to, the world was white._

_"Waka?"_

_Naruto blinked. He sat up. Propped himself up on his elbows. He was in a bed. That he could understand. But what he couldn't understand was this:_

_He was staring at a crow._

_It was a small crow with a large, round head, a small beak, tiny red pupils, and a dark red gem-like item on his forehead. He wore a strange, creme colored robe, with prayer beads around his neck and tabi on his feet. His large wings kept him aloft, drifting just above the boy's face._

_"Are you alright, Waka?" the crow asked._

_"Aaaah!"_

_Naruto screamed, scrambling backwards until his head slammed against the wall._

_"A talking crow?" He shook his head. "I'm dreaming." A laugh. "Yes, that's it. I must be dreaming!" He couldn't possibly look like this, with long, crimson hair, and eyes of the most scintilating scarlet._

_"Young Master, I assure you, you're most certainly awake-_

_"The hell I am!" The boy snapped back. "None of this makes any sense! The next thing you'll tell me, your so-called Lord of Pandemonium will walk right through the door!" As his luck would have it the door chose that very moment to slide open._

_"Did somebody call me?"_

_Naruto went pale as a sheet._

_"Y-Y-Y-You're kidding me, right?"_

_"Son?"_

_Naruto looked left. Then he looked right. Finally, he touched a finger to his chest._

_"Me?"_

_The other smirked, golden eyes shining in sinister mirth._

_"Well, I'm certainly not talking about Karasu-Tengu."_

_"Soooo...let me get this straight." Naruto began, counting off on his fingers. "I'm the son of a demon-_

_"Half-demon." Kurasu-Tengu corrected._

_"Whatever!"_

_"Anyway, I'm the son of a half-demon, which makes me-_

_"Half-Demon." The old crow answered._

_"How the hell does that work?" Naruto blinked._

_"Rihan-sama fathered you with Lady Yamabuki, a full demon." Karasu-Tengu puffed its chest out proudly. "Which makes you, waka, a half demon!"_

_"R-Right." The blond still thought this was a dream, but he plowed on ahead. "So...in continuation I'm the half-demon son of a half-demon, who married a demon." When the yoka nodded, Naruto continued. "And because I'm the oldest child, that makes me the next heir of his clan? apparently I can go between forms at will?"_

_"So you understand then?"_

_"Like hell!" Naruto threw his hand down on the floor._

_"Rikuo-sama will be so dissapointed..._

_That got Naruto's attention._

_"I have a little brother?"_

_"Half-brother." The crow corrected. "Rikuo-sama will be five years old tomorrow."_

**R&R! =D **


	2. Brotherhood

**A/N: I SERIOUSLY have an obsession with this anime. I just hope they make a third season! Anyway, onto the story. Here, we find Naruto waking from what he thinks was all a ridiculous dream...or was it? How will he adapt to a world filled with youkai existing just beyond the boundaries of what shinobi consider to be reality? How will he react to Ukioe Town, Rikuo, and everything else ahead? But, more importantly...**

**...When will he take his penultimate revenge on Konoha?**

_Peace is a lie, there is only passion. With passion, I gain strength. With strength, I gain power...with power I gain vengeance._

_~Nura Naruto._

**Brotherhood**

Nurarihyon was getting too old for this crap.

He could feel his old bones aching as he turned to face Rihan, knowing full well what news his son brought. Given the circumstance, it should have been good news. As it were he found himself susipicious. But he would hold his suspicions until he heard Rihan's side of the story.

"So, I have a grandson, do I?" Nurarihyon began, scowling down at his son. _"Another_ grandson?"

"Pops, I can explain-

It took a blink of an eye for the Nurarihyon to land a flying kick on the face of his ridiculous son.

"You rascal…! I thought Yamabuki couldn't have any children! Not only that, but you've already got yourself a son! Seriously, are you out of your mind?" The Nurarihyon yelled in disbelief; shocked and outraged, pointing his finger fiercely at his stupid son, who, for the most part, scratched the back of his head and yawned.

"Chill old man, chill." Rihan cajoled, hoping his father would calm down. "I swear, I didn't know about the kid until a few days ago!"

And it was true.

Several days ago, Kubinashi and Kejoro had returned with an unconcsious boy in two; whom they claimed to be Rihan's long lost son. When questioned further, the pair swore they'd seen his transformation, and felt his youki. He'd collapse midway through the journey, unable to sustain his demon form for more than the three days necessary to find their way back to Ukiyoe town.

Nura Rihan had only ever lain with one woman before Wakana. His former wife of fifty years, Yamabuki Otome. What his father didn't seem to understand was that despite the curse of Hagoromo Kitsune, his first wife had done just that; because she'd borne him a son.

"So where is the little runt?" Nurarihyon sighed, taking a puff of his pipe. "Don't tell me he's already run off."

"Pops!" Rihan exclaimed aghast, gawping at his father. "Stop worrying!"

"If he's anything like you, I should worry!"

"Apparently, he's from some village on the outskirts of Edo." Rihan answered. "If not for that pulse of youki he'd released they never would have found him." Nurarihyon knew what his son spoke of. These so-called shinobi were similar to onymoji, the sole exception being that they were ignorant of ayakash,i to the point of stupidity. They did not see nor did they believe in the existence of these otherwordly creatures from the beyond. They had no way of knowing just how tightly their worlds were intertwined. But still...

"Edo?"

Wasn't that the last place Yamabuki had been seen?

"Still, to think that she had a son...why didn't she return?"

Rihan grimaced.

"Pops, can we _not_ talk about that?"

"You piece of shit! I believe you haven't answered my question! What happened to Yamabuki?" Nurarihyon grumbled at his son in an irritated tone. Rihan stole a glance back from whence he came, squared his shoulders, and faced his father.

"Pops, I don't think Yamabuki is coming back."

There was a silence.

"She's passed on, hasn't she?" Nurarihyon took a long drag of his pipe, but said nothing more.

"Probably." admitted Rihan, turning to leave.

"Wandering off again, are you?"

Nura Rihan turned; his head reappearing over his shoulder, regarding his father with a blazing iris.

"I'm going to see Yamabuki's son." There was a fire in his son's eyes, and steel in his tone. _"My son_. And your grandson, if you give a damn. You have a problem with that well you can try and stop me from leaving. Either way, I'm going." With that, he spun on his heel and left the ancestral hall...

Leaving his grandfather to stew in his thoughts.

* * *

When Naruto finally came to, the world was white.

He'd had the strangest dream.

He'd dreamt that he was being beaten, that he was on the verge of being killed. But he hadn't been killed. He'd killed them. The dreamy was fuzzy on that part; and he wasn't quite sure how he'd done it, only that he had. It was nice to dream all things considered. He'd finally taken his vengeance for all the pain they'd given him. But it was just that he told himself.

Only it wasn't a dream.

"Waka?"

Nura Naruto opened his eyes. Blinked. Sat up. Propped himself up on his elbows. He was in a bed. That much, he could understand. But what he couldn't understand was this; where the hell was he and why could he see a sakure tree through a paper rice panel. Also, he was staring a bird. Not just any bird, mind you.

He was staring at a crow.

It was a small crow with a large, round head, a small beak, tiny red pupils, and a dark red gem-like item on his forehead. He wore a strange, creme colored robe, with prayer beads around his neck and tabi on his feet. His large wings kept him aloft, drifting just above the boy's face. And then the crow did the strangest thing.

_He spoke._

"Are you alright, Waka?" the crow asked.

_"Aaaah!"_

Naruto _screamed,_ scrambling backwards until his head slammed against a wall. Black spots speckled before his vision, blinding him. He groaned scrubbing at his face but to no avail. The crow was still there when he opened his eyes. So was the tree and so too were the strange little creatures millng around the edges of his peripheal. He saw no more than a dozen of them, some hidin gin the rafters, and others, lurking just beyond the door. Their shape and form varied from creature to creature but one thing remained ever static. These were monsters. Creatures he had no business dealing with. Creatures that scared the shit out of him!

"What the hell am I doing here!" He shrieked, the sudden shout causing them to take shelter within the walls and ceiling. "And where the hell is here, anyway!"

"Ano...waka...you came here of your own free will." The crow replied. "Also, the Lord of Pandemonium is waiting for you...

Naruto sweatdropped, just now coming to terms with the bird.

"A talking crow?" He shook his head. "I'm dreaming." A laugh. "Yes, that's it. I must be dreaming!" This couldn't be real. He couldn't possibly look like this, with long, crimson hair, and eyes of the most scintilating scarlet.

"Young Master I can assure you, you're most certainly awake-

"The hell I am!" The boy snapped back. "None of this makes any sense! The next thing you'll tell me, your so-called Lord of Pandemonium will walk right through the door!" As his luck would have it the door chose that very moment to slide open.

"Did somebody call me?"

Naruto went pale as a sheet.

"Y-Y-Y-You're kidding me, right?"

Standing before him was a man. But not just any man. This man was clad in a pale green, stripped kimono and wooden sandals. Long, black hair, jutted out from his head, an hereito impossible feat for a human. For a human. His golden eyes gleamed with warmth and amusement as he stepped inside; his lips quirking in a silent smile as he entered the room. The boy eyed him warily.

"Yo." When he spoke his voice was like black velvet; soft, smooth, and utterly charming. "Looks like you're finally awake." Naruto was taken aback by the man's words. Unlike the talkative crow...this man looked normal. Save for the eyes. Those deep, bewitching pools of gleaming gold and saffron threatened to drag him down to suffocate him with kindness if he so allowed. He had many things he wanted to say to this man, but instead he settled for a lame-sounding:

"Yeah...I guess so...

"Kubinashi tells me you turned thirteen yesterday." Naruto recoiled at his touch; because his words evoked the memory. The beatings. The pain. The boiling of his blood as he stood up, despite his wounds and and...and what? He couldn't remember anything after that. It didn't even occur to him to question the name of the youkai escort who'd first brought him here. Too subsumed in thought, he found his panic receding, replaced by an eerie calm. He didn't remember this Kubinashi fellow, but the man did have one fact right. He'd turned thirteen only a few days ago.

"Yeah."

The man stared at him for a long tender moment. Naruto squirmed restlessly beneath the man's gaze. Who the hell was this guy? Why was he staring at him like some sort of long lost son? Wait a second. Did he actually think that? Did he have some sort of relation to this man? He peered up at him, scrutinizing. Impossible. He didn't look a damned thing like him. The black hair, those golden eyes, they weren't his!

And then the man_-asshole!-_had to ruin it all by speaking.

"Congratulations!" The black-haired stranger laughed abruptly; clapping the boy on the back, neatly knocking the breath from his lungs. "You've finally come of age!"

Naruto looked at the man as if he'd just grown an extra head.

_"Huh?"_

"Rihan-sama's right!" The talking crow chimed cheerily. "Naruto-dono awakened to his youkai form only recently!"

_Youkai?_

The man_-Rihan-_laughed heartily.

"I expected no less from a child of mine."

Naruto froze.

_Child?_

Naruto looked left. Then he looked right. Finding nothing and no one, he touched a quivering finger to his chest in disbelief. He was hopelssly baffled. Was this man saying he was his son? No, that couldn't be it. It couldn't possibly be possible...

_"Me?"_

The other smirked, golden eyes shining in sinister mirth.

"Well, I'm certainly not talking about Karasu-Tengu."

The words hit him like a frozen fist in the gut. Naruto felt like he'd just been stabbed. This man was claiming to be his father? After all these years, he just appeared? Just like that? Where had he been?

"Wait wait wait!" Naruto threw ups his hands in exasperation. "Wait just a damned second! What the _hell_ is going?" He jerked a finger at Karasu-Tengu. "First, a talking crow starts well, talking by calling me young master. Second, you honestly expect me to believe that I'm your son? Where's your proof?" He folded his arms, defensively, ignoring the small part of him that urged himself to embrace Rihan.

"Until three days ago, I didn't know you even existed." Rihan admonished lightly. "How could I possibly search for someone I didn't know about?" Naruto opened his mouth to refute the man's claim, then snapped it shut. He had a point, there. It did little to lessen the sting however. He unfoled his arms, suddenly hesistant. He didn't want to believe that this man was his father. Not yet. Thankfully, he didn't have to.

"What's with those things up there?" He pointed toward the ceiling.

"What?" Rihan hurriedly looked up then, surprised as indeed he saw a lot of small _youkai_ peeking at them. "Oi! I told you not to come inside my room!" he shouted, totally annoyed that those small creatures didn't listen to him. Well, those _youkai_ quickly squeaked and scrammed away though, probably afraid that they had angered the Nidaime of the Nura Clan.

"Jeez… those wimps…!" Rihan huffed slightly as he went back to sit, and he heard Naruto chuckle at him. "What's funny?" he looked at the boy, narrowing his eyes, feeling slightly annoyed because he'd laughed at him.

"Ah…, I'm sorry," Naruto hid his still snickering mouth with his palm. "It's just… relieving, I guess…," he sighed as he put down his hand and then smiled genuinely at Rihan, making the boss widen his eyes slightly witnessing such graceful expression from the younger boy. "You're not as scary as I thought." And it was true. Rihan's comical shout and outburst made him almost fatherly in his eyes. Almost.

"I'll take that as a compliment, son."

"I have a name."

Rihan perked up at that.

Ah, so Yamabuki had given him a name, after all! He wasn't quite willing to tell the boy about his mother just yet, but he was eager to learn his son's name all the same. What could she have named him? Knowing Yamabuki, it was probably something like...

"Naruto."

Rihan nearly fell over.

"Naruto?" he repeated, dumbfounded.

Much to Rihan's dismay, the boy nodded.

"Yamabuki...she seriously gave you that name?"

"Yamabuki?"

This time, Rihan really did fall over.

_Shit!_

"Ahahaha...just the name of an old friend." Rihan lied. Shit, how am I going to tell him about his mother...

"Really?" Naruto asked. "It sounds familiar...

"It isn't!" Rihan reassured him. "Really!"

"Soooo...let me get this straight." Naruto began, counting off on his fingers. "I'm the son of a demon-

_"Half-demon."_ Kurasu-Tengu corrected.

"Whatever!" Rihan waved the comment away.

"Anyway, I'm the son of a half-demon, which makes me-

"Half-Demon." The old crow repeated, matter-of-factly, causing Rihan to pale.

"How the hell does that work?" blinked Naruto.

"Rihan-sama fathered you with Lady Yamabuki, a full demon." Karasu-Tengu puffed its chest out proudly. "Which makes you, waka, a half_-urgh!"_ He never had a chance to try and finish his sentence as Rihan violently seized the small crow and tossed him outside. Naruto sweatdropped at that. His father really was scary after all! Violent, too! With an iratr sigh, the hanyo stormed outside and began to berate the crow.

"Damnit, Karasu-Tengu!" The nidaime shouted! "I wasn't going to tell him about her just yet!"

"But the Third Heir deserves to know!" countered the crow as he extricated himself from the earth. "How can you keep this from him!"

"We haven't decided whether or not he'll be the third, yet!"

"But he has Rihan-sama's bood!" Karasu-Tengu insisted. "He's more than worthy of becoming the third heir!"

_"I have a mother?"_

Naruto's question, soft and simple, tore through their arguement and ripped it to pieces.

Both youkai exchanged a saddened glance.

"Naruto-sama, Lady Yamabuki has...

_...passed away."_ The words tasted like bile in his throat, but Rihan pressed on. Better to lie, better to let his son think Yamabuki dead,

"R-Right." The blond remained convinced that this was all just a figment of his imagination, but he plowed on ahead. "So...in continuation I'm the half-demon son of a half-demon, who married a demon." When the yoka nodded, Naruto continued. "And because I'm the oldest child, that makes me the next heir of his clan? apparently I can go between forms at will?" When the two demon nodded, Naruto fell silent.

"So you understand then?"

"Like hell!" Naruto leapt to his feet, screaming at the top of his lungs. "There's no way I'm going to accept this!"

Rihan sighed.

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Look, I'm flattered, really, I am, but...

Karasu-Teng nodded.

"Rikuo-sama will be so dissapointed...

That got Naruto's attention.

"Rikuo?"

"Your little brother." Rihan answered. "Well, half-brother actually."

"I have a brother?"

"Half-brother." The Karasu-Tengu chimed. "Rikuo-sama will be five years old tomorrow."

"Eh?"

"Well, I guess it can't hurt to meet him...

* * *

Naruto felt his heart melt as he soon as he saw him.

He was a young lad, bright and inquisitive.

Nura Rikuo, a sandy haired boy with dark chocolate eyes, peered up at his big brother for the very first time.

"Otou-san, who's this?" Rikuo asked

"Rikuo, this is Naruto." Rihan explained, ruffling the blonde's hair . "He's going to be your big brother from now on."

"Now wait just a second!" Naruto shouted. "I said no such thing-huh?"

Rihan was already walking away.

_"Aaaargh!"_

**A/N: Poor Naruto, he just isn't up to being a youkai, is he? Sadly, this takes place only a few years before Rihan's untimely demise. Will he live? Or will he fall fate to the same end as the manga? In continuation I know Yamabuki wasn't supposed to have any kids because of that stupid Hagoromo Kitsune, but really, who is to say that it was because of the curse that she couldn't have a kid or what? LOLZ **

**You know, I feel REALLY sorry for Konoha now...**

**R&R! =D **

**Here's another preview of what to expect in the oncoming chapters! We get to see the Nura Clan's reaction to Naruto's prescence as a whole next chappy! And a certain Hyuuga may reincarnate into the Keikain household *grins* Soon thereafter, vengeance shall be wrought upon Konoha! HAHAHA!**

_"Supreme Commander, allow me to test the boy." Gyuki requested._

_"Oi, Gyuuki...is that really necessary?" Rihan asked._

_"If he is to be the Third Heir then I must be certain." With a soft hiss, the katana flew forth from its sheathe. Without a sound, he advanced upon Naruto; the boy watching as the tapered tip trailed through the grass and its gentle grip and came into a readied position._

_"Oi, oi, what the hell?" He eyed the blade warily, sliding back half a step. "_

_"And if I fail?"_

_"Then you shall die!" Gyuki brought the blade crashing down._

_Hard._

_Naruto head snapped up and his eyes gleamed a violent violet._

_"So all I have to do is stop your attack...Gyuki?"_

_The transformation happened so swiftly, Nurarihyon nearly missed it. One minute the boy was standing there, his knees knocking together. The next, his head snapped up and his voice changed; taking on a deep, husky tone. He raised a hand, finger extended the pale skin gleaming in the afternoon light as Gyuuki rushed him. A great wind swept for the depths and burst outward, all in the same instant._

_And then it was over._

_Gyuuki's blade was sent flying, the broken hilt and handle twirling end over end over end before sticking itself in the earth._

_The Youkaized Naruto peered down at his opponent and smiled. He lowered his hand, revealing the tapered tip, trapped between two fingers._

_"Have I passed your test, Gyuuki?"_

_"S-Sir!"_

_"He's definitely your son, Rihan." Nurarihyon nodded._

_Rihan smiled; the proud smile of a father filled with pride._

_"He certainly is."_

* * *

_Naruto growled; it was a deep, throaty sound._

_"Oi oi oi...what the hell do you think you're doing, little sister?" Yamabuki Otome blinked up at him, startled to find the blade trapped within her brother's fist. The tip had just pricked Rihan's back, alarming the second heir, but nothing more. Naruto hauled her forward, not into his fist, but into his arms. The young Yamabuki didn't even struggle. Of this, she only trembled._

_"Father."_

_He saw movement within the flower petals._

_"What's this?"_

_The eye of Gorozaemon didn't even have time to scream as the demon's claws pierced his flesh, tearing his head from his shoulders. The decapitated head, loosed a nameless cackle as it rolled free fromthe body, dtermined that it would one day have vengeance._

_"This isn't over!" The eye swore to himself. "I will return! I will have my revenge!"_

_"And I will have mine,with this clan as my weapon." Naruto whispered blackly as he drove his fingers through the pulsating red iris. "Now, begone!"_

**Hope you enjoyed it!**

**R&R! =D **


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